The Esperanza

Launched in February 2002, the Esperanza is the largest vessel in the Greenpeace fleet. And Esperanza – Spanish for "hope" – is the first Greenpeace ship to be named by our supporters.

History

The ship is the fourth of 14 fire-fighting vessels ordered by the Russian government between 1983 and 1987 from Stocznia Polnocna construction yard in Gdansk, Poland. Heavy ice class and speed were one of the requirements.

The Esperanza was one of 14 similar vessels commissioned by the Russian government and used by the Russian Navy as a fire-fighting ship in Murmansk.

Lack of funds saw the ship laid up for some years in the late 80s,then sold a couple of times, finally working in Norway as a supply vessel.

At 72 metres length, and a top speed of 16 knots, the ship is ideal for fast and long range work.

The ship's ice class status means it can also work in polar regions.

It has taken many months to refit the ship in as environmentally friendly way as possible and these improvements include: the removal or safe containment of all asbestos; fitting a special fuel system to avoid spillage; newly fitted, more efficient, diesel electric propulsion; on board recycling of waste water, leaving only clean water pumped overboard; a waste based heating system; bilge water purifiers,15 times more effective than current legislation demands; TBT-free hull paint; ammonia based refrigeration and air-conditioning rather than climate changing and ozone depleting Freon gas - the first Dutch registered vessel to be so fitted; and an environmentally and economically efficient propulsion system to reduce CO2 emissions.

In addition, standard Greenpeace operating equipment has also been fitted. A new helicopter deck has been added, as well as special boat cranes to launch the inflatables.

The latest updates

Greenpeace's ship, the Esperanza, is still on station in the Arctic to expose renewed Norwegian efforts to drill for oil in this pristine environment.
Last week we successfully headed off attempts by an oil company to complete...

As Norway pushes further into the Arctic with offshore oil drilling, the corresponding environmental risks have increased significantly.
The Barents Sea is one of the richest, most unique marine ecosystems in the world, with...

The Esperanza has been in Svalbard, in the Arctic, for a few weeks now and we recently became aware of something urgent and disturbing. A seismic company called Dolphin Geophysical, commissioned by the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate, ...

Today we are in Venice with the Rainbow Warrior. Venice – which is already fighting sea level rise – is a city which is extremely threatened by climate change. For the people who live there and the millions who visit every year, we...

As the wrecked Italian cruise ship Costa Concordia is towed to its home port of Genoa, Greenpeace Italy and the Italian environmental group Legambiente will monitor for pollution and spills. We're particularly concerned about impacts...